Hello everyone/tips for college

[natethegreat]

Any one have any advice/words of wisdom for tech theater in college? I've worked on set/lights/sound all four years at my high school and this fall will be majoring in Theatre Technology at University of Texas at Austin.

 

[theILLUMINATEDfrog]

do everything humanly possible. ween your way off of sleep now. and don't date actresses.

 

[natethegreat]

woohoo! i've already got the sleep deprivation thing down....is there such a thing as high caffeinated coffee? not that i mind drinking a pot a day, i just wish it'd do a bit more!

 

[theILLUMINATEDfrog]

coffee from DunkinDonuts is the strongest there is. For the first 2 years of college for me there was a 24-hour DD right by campus. Wish it would have stayed open for my senior year

 

[Sony]

ThinkGeek :: Shower Shock Caffeinated Soap

ThinkGeek :: Shower Shock Caffeinated Body Wash

I imagine it's horrible for you....but it works, I swear...wakes me up in the morning.

 

[030366]

Check your school's library. They probably have all the landmark theatre tech books available there.

Also, if you're looking to design, make yourself available as soon as possible. Find out who's directing and when, and ask them if you can be on their design team. Don't wait for the faculty to notice you.

 

[icewolf08]

Study something other than theatre! I am not kidding. Sure, you probably have some kind of gen-ed requirements, but you should not limit yourself to the requirements of your major. If there is some science class that sounds interesting, take it! Get out of the theatre department as much as you can. Sometimes this is good purely for meeting people other than those who share your major. College has a lot to offer, don't pigeon-hole yourself into one nook. The best technicians and designers have a well rounded education that is not limited to what was taught in the theatre department.

 

[Eboy87]

Study something other than theatre! I am not kidding. Sure, you probably have some kind of gen-ed requirements, but you should not limit yourself to the requirements of your major. If there is some science class that sounds interesting, take it! Get out of the theatre department as much as you can. Sometimes this is good purely for meeting people other than those who share your major. College has a lot to offer, don't pigeon-hole yourself into one nook. The best technicians and designers have a well rounded education that is not limited to what was taught in the theatre department.

+1

Also, realize that (most) of the people in these programs were the "best" at their respective high schools too, and some may be better than you. Not a dig at you in any way (I don't know you), but it caught up a few of my friends. Also, powernaps are your friend too.

Other than that, try and work as much as you can, get your name out there, and give business cards to the people you work with. Make friends with the directing students, and you'll get work.

 

[030366]

Other than that, try and work as much as you can, get your name out there, and give business cards to the people you work with.

Business cards are awesome. Even just the free ones from vistaprint.com are enough. The convenience factor is off the charts (especially if your name is long or unusual), and it makes you look extra-professional to boot.

Also, see if you can go to a theatre conference at least once. You learn a lot, meet a lot of people in the industry, and really get a sense of what's out there and what people are doing.

 

[gafftaper]

Hi, Moved this over to the Education forum since we are trying to talk about education and college here.

My best advice is to not act like a know it all. Too often high school students come into college thinking they know it all because they did tech in high school. Often they are full of bad habits and bad theory and it takes me a long time to retrain them. Go to college with an open mind. Say to your self I know how we did things at my high school but I don't know how they do them here. Work hard. Always be the first to arrive and the last to leave. If there's nothing to do, find something to do. Don't be lazy. Take the dirty job with pleasure.

See this article for more great thoughts.